The Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) approved disbursements to Dominica, Grenada, and St. Lucia following their requests under the Rapid Credit Facility (RCF) mechanism, with a combined SDR 48 million (US$65.6 million), to help cover their balance of payment needs stemming from the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Disbursements to all three countries are set at the maximum available access under the RCF instrument of 100 percent of quota for Grenada (SDR 16.4 million or US$ 22.4 million) and St. Lucia (SDR 21.4 million or US$ 29.2 million), and 89.4 percent of quota for Dominica (SDR 10.3 million or US$14 million).
These countries are small states that are very vulnerable to shocks, including large natural disasters, with Dominica in particular still recovering from the devastation of Hurricane Maria in 2017.